Aidonues quickly drove through the freeway, but he couldn't help but feel anxious and excited about his first date with his mate. Persefone lived in the city of Paramount, a bit far from where he lived. It took thirty-five minutes for him to arrive in the small, quiet city. Aidoneus was five minutes from the Subway restaurant, which Persefone said she would wait by. When approaching his destination, he saw Persefone waiting for him.

Once in a safe spot, the car's windows were opened, and Aidoneus called out to Persefone, who noticed him. Persefone smiled as she walked toward Aidoneus' car, opened it, and entered it. Once both were situated, Aidoneus drove off and headed toward the freeway to reach their destination.

While driving, the young man couldn't help but look at his mate occasionally, who wore a one-shoulder steampunk dress with a splicing lace-up handkerchief; the bottom part of the dress had a dark green and black pattern. She also wore silver raven earrings and a slight hint of makeup. "Y-You look lovely in your dress. I assume you like the goth scene?"

"Y-Yeah. I didn't know whether or not this was okay, but I always liked the style."

"Don't think so badly of it; you wear what you are comfortable with. I also looked at the coffee place that we're going to and it looks interesting."

Persefone smiled. "I tried it twice; they had good coffee and tea." As Aidoneus drove on the freeway again, he played music to ease their nervousness. To his delight, Persefone recognized the artist and informed him that she was a fan of Rammstein. They spoke about the band and other music genres they liked throughout the drive toward the city of Garden Grove, where the coffee shop was.

When arriving, Aidoneus parked his car, and he and Persefone got out and walked toward the small coffee shop. "This place is a family-owned business, and the owners are charming! It has a Gothic Victorian vibe, but they announced that they decorated their shop with gothic Christmas ornaments!"

"Hm, I look forward to it." Once inside, there were four tables with wooden chairs on the right side. On the left was a fireplace with two Victorian-style sofas and two black-colored cabinets with the coffee's brand merchandise. On the further end were other tables and chairs and a sign that said, 'tea room.'

There was a black-colored Christmas tree with Halloween-themed ornaments. On top of the fireplace were many Jack Skeleton Christmas figurines, black wreaths, and more. The duo looked at the menu, placed their orders, and sat on one of the tables. "So, what do you think?"

Aidoneus couldn't help but marvel at the coffee shop's uniqueness. "It's a nice, cozy place, and I love the style. It gladdens me that people are making businesses that fit their passion."

Persefone was relieved Aidoneus was chill since she thought he would feel out of place. "Totally! People try to fit society's expectations, but when people get away from that and do what makes them happy, it allows others to understand something new."

"You know, I was curious about something. What ended up happening with your friend and her date?"

"I don't know. Patrisha, who pressured me to follow her plan, was probably caught, which may be why she hadn't called me." Their orders were called, and Aidoneus stood up, got their drinks, and sat back down. "Still, I hope it went well for Maeve. She deserves happiness since her ex broke up with her before the holidays."

"Did you say Maeve?" Persefone nodded. Aidonues wanted to laugh at the coincidence but refrained from doing so. "This might be awkward, but my Pops is dating someone with that name. There's a possibility that he's dating your friend." The two were quiet as they processed the information; Persefone couldn't help but feel awkward and concerned; Aidoneus noticed. "I can see that you are close with your friend like I am close with my Pops. Are you concerned that if they don't work out, then it would affect us?"

Persefone bit her lower lip as a blush came across her face. "The thing is, Maeve and I work together in the same class and school. She is like an older sister I never had and motivated me to work in education. If their relationship doesn't work, I-I don't know if I would be able to see you the same way."

Aidoneus felt his heart break when Persefone thought of leaving him if something happened to his father and Maeve's relationship. Although he felt hurt, Aidoneus couldn't help but admire Persefone's view of friendship; it showed him the type of person she was. "I understand and respect your feelings. Please rest assured that my Pops is a man with dignity and respect. He would never do anything to hurt your friend, Maeve. He speaks fondly of her and feels happiness whenever he gets the chance to see her." Aidoneus smiled as he took a sip of his coffee. "Besides, it's almost Christmas where miracles happen!"

Persefone smiled, feeling reassured by his words. "I-I guess you're right. All I want is Maeve to be happy. I just don't want her to get hurt." She cleared her throat and changed the topic to a more positive note. The two spoke about other topics regarding hobbies, books, movies, music, etc. Persefone enjoyed herself very much, and as the date went on, she couldn't help but hope nothing would go wrong between her and Aidoneus.

Aidoneus and Persefone stayed another two hours in the coffee shop, discussing various topics until they eventually agreed to go for a walk. Persefone decided to use the restroom before going. Aidoneus noticed that she had accidentally left her phone on the chair. He got the phone and put it on the table so Persefone wouldn't lose it; the phone vibrated.

A message was received. The young werewolf didn't like to pry into people's business and privacy, but he couldn't deny his curiosity. It was from an unknown number, and from what could be gathered, parts of the message said, "I miss you. Please talk..."

The rest of the message couldn't be read since the phone had to be logged in. Aidoneus believed it was from another male, and his werewolf side got angry. He couldn't help since werewolves are possessive and territorial. "Is she seeing another man beside me?" Aidoneus shook his head. "I can't think that way. Maybe it's a misunderstanding."

"H-Hey, are you ready?" Persefone arrived from the restroom.

Aidoenus stood up from his seat. "Sure am. Don't forget your phone; it was on the chair."

Persefone looked at her phone, grabbed it, and put it in her small purse. "Thanks. It's a brand new phone since my old one was a bit of a nuisance. Ready to go?"

Aidoneus nodded; the duo said their goodbyes to the shop owners and walked outside. They decided to walk on the sidewalk to get some fresh air. The werewolf tried his best to act neutral, but he was seething. Questions went through his mind, figuring out who tried to text his mate. He was so entrapped in his thoughts that he didn't hear Persefone speaking to him. "Aidoneus!"

"Hm, what?"

"I asked if you were okay. You look very thoughtful."

"Oh, sorry about that. I remembered something; it was about my parents." Aidoneus felt disgusted with himself for lying to his mate.

"Your parents? Are you having conflicts about who you are going to visit?"

Aidoneus shook his head. "No, it's just that I can't help how they were when they were still married. Christmas brings so many memories." He hoped that Persefone would believe him.

"Believe it or not, I understand your predicament." Persefone didn't like talking too much about her personal life; she feared people could use it against her. However, she felt that Aidoneus was trustworthy. "My parents are still together, but whenever I see them, I feel they tolerate one another."

"Tolerate one another?"

"In my culture, when one is married, one has to stick it out, even if they're not happy together."

Aidoneus noticed that Persefone looked hurt when speaking about her parents' situation. "How do you know that they're not happy? Have they spoken to you about it?"

"No, my parents are too proud, and they grew up in an environment where they don't speak about their feelings due to the fear of being judged." Persefone looked at the trees on the sidewalk's corners as the sounds of the leaves rustling made her feel at ease. "It would be best if they divorced so they could live the lives they want.

"I'm so sorry," Aidoneus stopped, which prompted her to do the same. "I guess we have much in common than we can admit."

The duo looked at one another, and a spark went through their bodies, making them shiver. Their moment was interrupted when Persefone's phone vibrated. Both blinked, and Persefone reached for her phone to see who was calling her. Aidoneus noticed that her expression had changed into annoyance, so she closed the call. "Sorry about that."

"Is something wrong? I could tell that you looked bothered." He knew something was wrong and hoped Persefone would tell him who texted her.

"It's nothing, just a former...friend. Anyway, I need to get home."

"Sure. Um, would you like to meet again? I enjoyed my time with you."

Persefone smiled. "Of course. I also enjoyed my time with you. I picked somewhere; you can pick somewhere."

Aidoneus was thoughtful. He thought about taking her to one of the places that his father took Maeve. However, he considered the possibility that Maeve and Persefone would talk about their dates and thought against it. Then, an idea popped into his mind. "You know, there is a small cafe in Hacienda Heights that I would like to go to. The owner not only sells tea and coffee but also bento boxes. The cafe is also close to a famous, free temple; if interested, we could go there afterward." The werewolf hoped Persefone would accept his idea and didn't think poorly of him.

"That sounds very nice. I just found out that Hacienda Heights had a famous temple. I'm in!"

"G-Great. Let's head back, and I'll take you home." Aidoneus felt relieved that his mate accepted his idea but still couldn't stop thinking about who had tried to contact her. "I need advice and might have to get it from an unlikely source.